Bhubaneswar: The Special Task Force (STF) has apprehended a trader involved in the illegal trade of pangolin scales in Bhubaneswar.
The accused, identified as Swabhiman Nayak from Boudh district’s Gochhabada area, was arrested and a large quantity of pangolin scales worth lakhs of rupees was seized from him.
According to investigations, the accused was allegedly killing pangolins to extract their scales and selling them.
Notably, a pangolin was rescued from a village in Sundargarh district after it was found entangled in a fence in Sundargarh district four days back. The pangolin weighing 3 kilograms got stuck in the fence surrounding Digambar Sa’s house in Jora village and forest department personnel rescued it.
It is pertinent to mention that the Indian pangolin (Maniscrassicaudata), also called thick-tailed pangolin, scaly anteater and ‘bajrakapta’ in Odia is a solitary, shy, slow-moving, nocturnal mammal. It is a schedule-I protected animal under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972. Schedule- I provides absolute protection – offences under this are prescribed for the highest penalties.
